Synchrony During Online Encounters Affects Social Affiliation and Theory of Mind but Not Empathy.

ABSTRACT: Moving together in time affects human social affiliation and cognition. However, it is unclear whether these effects hold for on-line video meetings and whether they extend to empathy (understanding or sharing others' emotions) and theory of mind (ToM; attribution of mental states to others). 126 young adult participants met through online video in unacquainted pairs. Participants either performed 3 min of synchronous arm movements paced by sounds (n = 40), asynchronous movements (n = 46) or a small talk condition (n = 40). In a subsequent empathy task, participants engaged in a conversation. A video recording of this conversation was played back, and each participant rated, at predetermined time points, how they felt and how they thought their partner felt. From this

SUBMITTER: Basile C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9450704 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature